[3] As of 2023, Shopee is recognized as the largest e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, with a total gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $47.9 billion.

Coupled with rising inflation and interest rates as well as setbacks in its internationalisation plans, Shopee laid off staff across multiple markets in June 2022, including employees from Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

[21] On 15 September 2022, Sea's CEO, Forrest Li, issued a memo to all employees detailing cost-cutting measures aimed at achieving "self-sufficiency" for the company.

[23] In the fourth quarter of 2022, Shopee achieved a positive adjusted EBITDA for the first time, amounting to $196.1 million, indicating improvements in revenue and operating costs.

[31] In its early phases of growth, Shopee offered subsidies and free shipping to its users although delivery services were still expensive in the areas it serves.

[32] Shopee had also received extreme international attention in 2019 after signing Portuguese and Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo to be the ambassador for the company.

That same year Shopee's 9.9 Super Shopping Day campaign featured a video of Ronaldo dancing to "Baby Shark".

[37] Shopee was recognized as top shopping app in Q2 2019 based on monthly active users, total downloads, and website visits, as per a report by iPrice.

[45] In November 2021, Shopee entered the Indian market with a soft launch, achieving over one million app installations on the Google Play Store and handling 100,000 orders a day.

[48] In September 2022, Shopee ended its local operations in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico, shifting to a cross-border model, and exited Argentina entirely.

[54] In June 2019, #ShopeeScam trended on Twitter after Shopee released a promotion in the Philippines that offered passes to a meet-and-greet with Blackpink for the top 568 spenders in their online store.

Couriers that serve Shopee Express deliveries were also not paid basic monthly salaries, though there is a US$7.90 bonus if they can deliver 40 or more packages in a single workday.

Shopee responded to the allegations that it has a fair incentive scheme that is in line with Indonesia's market and regulations, and what they offer is "highly competitive" within the industry.

[58] In late August 2022, a user of the Chinese social networking platform Maimai uploaded a post stating that he had relocated as part of a job offer from Shopee to work at the company's headquarters in Singapore.

[21][59][60] On September 28, 2022, Shopee Philippines received backlash when rumors started spreading that the platform would introduce Toni Gonzaga as its brand ambassador a day after the company's reported massive layoff.